North/South Language Body

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What plans they have to justify the decision-making process surrounding the budget of the Language Implementation Body and including consultation with the bodies concerned.

Baroness Amos: The budget for the North/South Language Body is determined in accordance with normal budgeting procedures on the basis of business plans as set out in the financial memorandum. This includes consultation with both agencies.

Northern Ireland Departments: Funding and Expenditure

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How much money each Northern Ireland department spent in the year 2003–04; whether there was an underspend in any department; and, if so, what was the amount and why.

Baroness Amos: Information on the extent of any underspends for Northern Ireland Departments for 2003–04 is not yet available. It is expected to be available before the Summer Parliamentary Recess.
	I will ensure the noble Lord is sent a copy of this information and copies are placed in the Library of the House.

Northern Ireland Departments: Funding and Expenditure

Baroness Blood: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How much money has come into Northern Ireland through the Northern Ireland block grant for children aged up to 14 years for each of the past five years; how this money was proportioned to each Northern Ireland government department; and what impact this money has had on children's services.

Baroness Amos: Public expenditure allocations to Northern Ireland are determined through the application of the Barnett formula, which provides a population-based share of changes in comparable Whitehall spending programmes. This approach does not allow for the tracking of additions to the NI block arising from general issues such as spending on children aged up to 14 years.

Cross-Border Implementation Bodies

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	On what basis the relocation of the headquarters of a cross-border implementation body is justified under a policy of care and maintenance.

Baroness Amos: The answer to the noble Lord's Question would depend on the circumstances, but in general the care and maintenance principle applies to the functions of a North/South body as opposed to where its headquarters is located.

Cross-Border Implementation Bodies

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Which activities may be undertaken by cross-Border implementation bodies under the policy of care and maintenance; and whether these include the relocation of headquarters.

Baroness Amos: It is not possible to provide an exhaustive list of all those activities that would be consistent with the policy of care and maintenance. However it may be helpful if I were to remind the noble Lord that the Statement of Clarification issued by the two Governments on 20 December 2002 said:
	"We intend to take only those decisions required to ensure proper care and maintenance of the Implementation Bodies and Tourism Ireland in the peformance of their necessary public functions. We intend only to pursue the policies and actions already agreed in the NSMC and not to introduce any new policies".
	I would refer the noble Lord to my Answer of 19 January 2004 (WA 118), which deals with the question of the consistency of the relocation of an implementation body's headquarters with this policy.

Northern Ireland Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 10 May (WA 1) concerning the Northern Ireland Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure, whether the department funded a visit of officials in April 2001 to attend a function in Washington organised by the Ulster-Scots Agency; and, if so, whether that visit was included in the answer.

Baroness Amos: This visit was among those included in the Written Answer I gave on 10 May (Official Report Col WA 1). In April 2001 officials undertook a number of engagements in Washington. This included attending a reception organised by the Ulster-Scots Agency.

Atomic Weapons Research Establishment, Aldermaston

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether the Ministry of Defence has submitted a proposal to the local planning authority for consent to build a large facility at the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment at Aldermaston; and, if so, what is the purpose of the facility.

Lord Bach: A notice of proposed development has been submitted to the local planning authority in support of a proposal to build a replacement laser facility at AWE, which is being considered by the Ministry of Defence. If built, the facility would contribute to the certification of warhead performance and safety assurance.

Thames Pleasure Craft

Lord Fearn: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How many pleasure craft are licensed to operate on the Thames to carry more than 50 members of the public; what is the total passenger capacity of all such craft; and what is the total passenger capacity of all pleasure craft licensed on the Thames.

Lord Davies of Oldham: There are 80 pleasure craft licensed to operate on the tidal Thames that can carry more than 50 members of the public, with the total passenger capacity of all such craft being 18,254. The total passenger capacity of all pleasure craft licensed on the tidal Thames is 19,059.

Network Rail

Lord Berkeley: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Who owns Network Rail and its assets.

Lord Davies of Oldham: Network Rail Limited is a company limited by guarantee which is owned by its members. Its wholly owned subsidiary, Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, owns the Great Britain rail infrastructure.

National Art Galleries

Lord Patten: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they will discuss with the directors of the major national art galleries the purchase of works by living British artists, such as Ken Howard, Jack Vettriano and John Ward, not currently represented in their collections.

Lord McIntosh of Haringey: The acquisition policies of the major national art galleries sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport are a matter for the trustees of those bodies. However, I understand that a number of these institutions hold works by some of the artists mentioned.

Electoral Pilots: Electronic Counting

Lord Greaves: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Which electoral pilots in each of the past four calandar years have involved e-counting in whole or in part; which such pilots involved a manual count of some or all of the ballot papers to check against the results of the e-counting technology; and what were the results of such checking.

Lord Rooker: Electronic counting can take two forms. First, where votes have been cast electronically, e.g. through the Internet or telephone, they are counted electronically automatically. The second form is the electronic counting of ballot papers. The table lists those local authorities that have piloted this latter form of electronic counting since May 2000:
	
		
			 Year Name of Local Authority Comments 
			 2000 Broxbourne Borough Council 
			 Three Rivers District Council 
			  
			 2001 No electoral pilots held 
			  
			 2002 Broxbourne Borough Council 
			  
			  Chorley Borough Council 
			  Combined with all-postal voting 
			  
			  Epping Forest District Council 
			   
			  London Borough of Hackney 
			  Combined with all-postal voting 
			  
			  Liverpool City Council 
			  Combined with e-voting 
			  
			  Rugby Borough Council 
			   
			  South Tyneside Metropolitan 
			 Borough Council 
			  Combined with all-postal voting 
			  
			  City of Westminster 
			   
			 2003 Basingstoke & Deane Borough Council 
			  Combined with e-voting 
			  
			  Broxbourne 
			 Borough Council 
			   
			  Chester-le-Street 
			 District Council 
			  Combined with all- 
			 postal voting 
			  
			  Chorley Borough 
			 Council 
			  Combined with all- 
			 postal voting and e-voting 
			  
			  Derwentside 
			 District Council 
			  Combined with all- 
			 postal voting 
			  
			  Epping Forest 
			 District Council 
			  Combined with 
			 e-voting 
			  
			  Shrewsbury & 
			 Atcham Borough 
			 Council 
			  Combined with all- 
			 postal voting and 
			 e-voting 
			  
			  South Oxfordshire 
			 District Council 
			   
			  South Tyneside 
			 Metropolitan 
			 Borough Council 
			  Combined with all- 
			 postal voting and e-voting 
			  
			  Wear Valley 
			 District Council 
			  Combined with all- 
			 postal voting 
			  
			 2004 Swindon Borough 
			 Council 
			  Combined with e-voting; Held at a 
			 by-election 
			  
		
	
	The elections for the Greater London Assembly and London Mayor in 2000 also used e-counting of ballot papers, but this was permitted under the terms of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 and was not an electoral pilot.
	There has been no manual checking of the e-counting results. However, there was a manual recount of the ballot papers at the Chester-le-Street, Derwentside and Wear Valley joint pilot in May 2003. This recount was requested after three recounts by the e-counting technology produced different results. It was subsequently identified that these discrepancies arose because the ballot papers that the e-counting systems had rejected as requiring adjudication had been adjudicated in a different manner each time they were checked.

Sex Offending against Children

Lord Northbourne: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How many children have been sexually or physically abused by:
	(a) a birth parent
	(b) a person living in the same household as the child who is not a birth parent; and
	(c) a person not in either of the above categories; in the last three years for which figures are available.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: The criminal statistics, published annually, do not categorise offences against children who have been sexually or physically abused in this way. The Home Office Court Proceedings database, can identify sexual or physical offences against children only where the age of the victim is identified by the offence. It does not hold information on the individual circumstances of the offence, thus the status of the defendant and relationship between victim and offender is not available.
	A research paper by the Home Office published in 1998, entitled Sex Offending against children: Understanding the risk indicates that while individuals who sexually abuse children are an extremely varied group, around three-quarters of perpetrators who sexually assault children are known to them with about 80 per cent of offences taking place in the home of either the offender or victim.

Drug Treatment and Testing Orders

Lord Adebowale: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	(a) how many drug treatment and testing orders (DTTOs) have been made in England and Wales in each year that figures are available; and
	(b) what targets they have set for the years 2004–05 and 2005–06 for the number of DTTOs to be made; and
	How many people with additional mental health problems have, since 2000
	(a) received treatment under a drug treatment and testing order (DTTO); and
	(b) successfully completed treatment under a DTTO; and
	What plans they have to introduce drug abstinence orders and drug abstinence requirements; and
	Since 2000—
	(a) how many drug treatment and testing orders (DTTOs) have been made for young people aged 16–18;
	(b) how many young people aged 16–18 have breached DTTOs; and
	(c) how many young people aged 16–18 have successfully completed DTTOs.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: The number of drug treatment and testing orders (DTTOs) made since roll-out of the order across England and Wales in October 2000 is:
	2000–01 (six months) —1,256
	2001–02—4,854
	2002–03—6,145
	2003–04—8,515
	The DTTO commencment target for 2004–05 is 13,000 orders, including 1,000 of the new lower intensity variant. This will increase to 16,000 orders in 2005–06, including 4,000 of the lower intensity variant.
	Information relating to the number of offenders with mental health problems who have received treatment under a DTTO and have successfully completed this treatment is not centrally available and could be collected only at disproportionate cost.
	There are no plans to roll-out drug abstinence orders or drug abstinence requirements as a requirement of a community order. Drug testing will become available as a licence requirement when the relevant section of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 is introduced. Under the new legislation the drug rehabilitation requirement will be introduced, which, similar to the DTTO, does not require abstinence but does require regular drug testing.
	According to information held by the Youth Justice Board, which includes unpublished data from 2003–04, 161 DTTOs were made for young people aged 16–17 between April 2000 and March 2004. Information relating to the number of DTTOs made in respect of 18 year olds and the number of breaches and successful completions for 16 to 18 year-olds is not centrally available.

European Union: National Parliaments

Lord Oakeshott of Seagrove Bay: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean on 6 April (WA 221), what are the residence criteria for membership of the Upper House in:
	(a) Belgium;
	(b) France;
	(c) Luxembourg;
	(d) Austria; and
	(e) Germany.

Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean: For all federal and regional elections in Belgium (including for the Chamber and Senate), candidates must be Belgian by birth or be naturalised Belgian; be in full possession of their civil and political rights (the right to vote can be withdrawn if convicted of serious criminal offences); be at least 21 years-old; and be resident in Belgium. There is no stipulation on the number of years resident in Belgium or the number of years since naturalisation.
	To stand for election to the French Sénat, one must be a French national and resident in France. There are no limitations for naturalised French citizens on how long they need to have had French nationality before they can stand.
	In Luxembourg the closest body to an upper chamber is the Conseil d'Etat (Council of State). It consists of 21 Members, of which a minimum of 11 have to hold lawyers' degrees. They are nominated by the Grand Duke. Candidates must be a Luxembourger (there is a five-year minimum residency to obtain citizenship); a resident of the country (no minimum time for EU 14 citizens); and be at least 30 years of age, with the exception of the Crown Prince. Membership ends after 15 years, or when a member turns 72.
	In Austria the Bundesrat functions as the "second chamber", representing the interests of the federal provinces in the legislative process. The 62 Members of the Bundesrat are not directly elected but are chosen by the regional parliaments (Landtag) in each of the nine federal provinces (Bundesland), in proportion to the representation of the politcal parties within the respective regional parliament. The candidates do not have to be Members of the regional parliament, but must fulfil the criteria to be elected to the Landtag. These are: Austrian nationality; having the main residence (Hauptwohnsitz) in the relevant Bundesland; no criminal record.
	Members of the Upper House (the Bundesrat) in Germany are appointed by the governments of the federal states (the Lander). As specified in the Federal Basic Law (Grundgesetz), Article 51(1), they must be Members of the respective Land government. In most Lander, the Minister President (Head of the Land Government) can freely pick their Ministers. They usually do not have to be Members of the Land parlaiment, or even necessarily resident in the Land. In theory, Lander could impose their own residence criteria for membership of their governments, but in practice none does so and any such criteria would need to be compatible with German federal law.
	All of these countries operate restrictions on their labour market for citizens of eight of the new EU member states which acceded on 1 May 2004 (the two exceptions being Cyprus and Malta.)

NHS: Continence Services

Lord Clement-Jones: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether the integrated continence services to be established by April 2004 will include specialist services and paediatric clinicians to support children with bladder and bowel conditions; and
	Whether every primary care trust is expected to have established the post of director of continence services by April 2004, as set out in the good practice in continence service guidelines in the older people's national service framework.

Lord Warner: Common childhood conditions, including enuresis and paediatric continence, will be considered under the forthcoming national service famework for children, young people and maternity services.
	The information on whether each primary care trust will have established the post of director of continence services is not collected centrally.
	The National Service Framework for Older People includes a milestone that, by April 2004, all local health and social care systems should have established an integrated continence service.
	Each National Health Service trust is responsible for creating its own business plan which shows how it will deploy its resources to deliver on both national and local priorities and fit within the plans of its PCT commissioners. These local plans will not be anlaysed centrally.
	Strategic health authorities will bring together those PCT plans into a comprehensive local delivery plan for their area.

NHS: Continence Services

Earl Howe: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether the integrated continence services set up in April 2004 include assessment, treatment and equipment for children.

Lord Warner: The National Service Framework for Older People includes a milestone that, by April 2004, all local health and social care systems should have established an integrated continence service.
	Common childhood conditions, including enuresis and paediatric continence, will be considered under the forthcoming national service framework for children, young people and maternity services.
	Each National Health Service Trust is responsible for creating its own business plan which shows how it will deploy its resourcese to deliver on both national and local priorities and fit within the plans of its Primary Care Trust commissioners. These local plans will not be analysed centrally.
	Strategic Health Authorities will bring together those PCT plans into a comprehensive Local Delivery Plan for their area.

Hip Replacements

Lord Jacobs: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Warner on 28 April (WA 88), how it is possible to calculate whether there is sufficient capacity in future to carry out hip replacements if the Government cannot ascertain how many people are on waiting lists, for how long they have been on the waiting list, and the current monthly demand for hip replacements.

Lord Warner: The Department of Health and the National Health Service have information on the number of patients waiting for orthopaedic surgery, the length of time patients wait and the number of patients who had hip replacements in previous years. This information is used to help forecast capacity required in future years.
	Strategic health authorities are currently developing detailed plans to reduce maximum waiting times in orthopaedics to six months by December 2005, taking into account likely trends in demand. These plans will be in place by June.

Psychotherapists

Earl Howe: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What progress has been made towards achieving a unified regime of self-regulation for psychotherapists; and what efforts they have recently made towards encouraging the different branches of the profession to reach agreement on this issue.

Lord Warner: Department of Health officials have had a series of meetings with organisations representing psychotherapists, counsellors and other practitioners of talking therapies since February 2001. Originally these meetings involved individual bodies but since September 2002 joint group meetings have been held. Discussions have centred on roles, competences and the training and standards of proficiency required, all of which are a prerequisite for statutory regulation. Progess has also been made on developing national occupational standards in this area.